Uncertain future for student pub

The Captain Cook Tavern, one of few remaining student pubs
in Dunedin, may be closing its doors. Photo by ODT Files.

The future of historic Dunedin student watering hole the
Captain Cook is unclear.

DB Breweries' lease of the bar runs out at the end of June,
and the operations manager of Cook Brothers Bars, which
subleases the bar, believed the bar would most likely close
when the lease ran out.

''I would find it hard to believe that anyone would [take
over the bar],'' Guy Randall said.

However, Noel Kennedy, one of three directors of Orari Street
Properties Investments Ltd, which owns the building, said
there was no question of the Cook closing, ''and we will be
fighting to make sure that never happens under our watch''.
Various parties were being spoken to about taking over the
lease, including DB, but ''nothing has been finalised at this
point'', he said.

''The Cook has such a brand that it would be ridiculous to
let that disappear.''

He said the bar could be operated with a ''different format''
once its sublease ran out.

When contacted again, Mr Randall stood by his comments the
Cook would likely close.

''We are not going to be there. It's up to the market if
someone wants to do it, but personally I don't think [anyone
will].''

The bar made less money than in the past because students'
drinking patterns had changed. More were heading to the
Octagon to drink, he said.

The company, which had taken its name from the bar, would be
sad to see the Dunedin institution go, but hoped to go out
with a bang, he said.

''There will certainly be a lot of activity during O-Week and
then again towards the end of the lease, where maybe we dive
back in history and might have some bands back upstairs
again.''

The bar had been a ''large part of student culture for
forever and a day'', he said.

''It [was] an important part of Dunedin culture in the 1980s,
with the Dunedin sound movement. A lot of great bands have
been through there.''

DB Breweries senior communications adviser Simon Smith said
the lease expired on June 29 and the company had no intention
of extending it.

''The fact that DB holds the head lease is essentially an
historical anomaly and, as such, DB has advised the landlord
that it does not intend to enter into a new lease of the
premises.''

The Captain Cook Tavern, known as the Cook, was established
in 1860 and stands as the last of the three main student pubs
in North Dunedin. The Gardens Tavern and the Bowler were
earlier bought by the University of Otago, for conversion
into academic facilities.

The flow on effect from supermarket alcohol sales is hitting
these pubs very hard. People are 'smashed' before they go out
and the pub gets hit when they're caught selling alcohol to
intoxicated people.

Pity to see it go, if it does. Love The Cook! I grew up
there, from about eight years old, onwards. My Dad was the
chef upstairs and we spent all Saturday mornings there while
he made his world famous Cook pies and then in the afternoon
while he was getting prepped for dinner that night.

This was when there were bands upstairs; shh, we use to play
the drums in the mornings; Netherworld Dancing Toys were one
of the bands, (before they made it big).

Mr McDow owned all the video games and used to clear them on
Saturday mornings and put credits on for us to play the games
to our hearts' content. The students use to hate these kids
that had to pull chairs up to see the screen and then they
had all the high scores, that could not be beaten.

Hope it does not close. I always go back when I am in Dunedin
- do not buy it Otago University and close it!

Food is not as good as when Dad was there and I am very sure
there is none of the locals left from those days. Jenny the
bartender use to give us coke and raspberry in the
afternoons. Agghh, the good old Cook days. Then I went to
Otago University and it took on a whole new meaning.

There were four 'main student pubs in North Dunedin", in no
particular order - The Bowling Green Hotel, The Gardens
Tavern, The Captain Cook Tavern and of course number four -
The Oriental Hotel! Heard of that one? They went through
different names etc, but are/were still the same places right
through. Perhaps soon the forgotten one will be the only
survivor.

"The bar had been a 'large part of student culture for
forever and a day'," said Mr Randall, but before that it was
a mixed community bar, and this continued long after the
legendary Phil Ruston upgraded it, to fit in with the altered
conditions resulting from the abolition of the 6 o'clock
swill and the revolutionary idea that bars could stay open
till 10pm without the world falling apart.

The lounge bar became the place where students, staff and
largely white-collar workers congregated at tables, and the
side bar remained the haven for tradesmen and labourers and
dart players with high stools and "leaner" tables. The mix of
people had a good effect on overall behaviour, with no group
assuming they had the "majority right" to be a pain in the
ask-yer-mother-for-sixpence to everyone else.

It was quite noticeable on Melbourne Cup day last year; only
around 20 people were in the pub to watch the race at 5pm. It
was plain also that none were students but either worked in
the area or happened to be passing.